roadmaven

I was perusing the main American Road website and I was interested in what was said about the American Road Foundation . I particularly liked this part: "As part of a strategic plan to promote and assist in the celebration of heritage tourism, the AMERICAN ROAD FOUNDATION plans to sponsor a regular conference and festival that will both celebrate the value of historic roads and provide educational opportunities through workshops and seminars. The first AMERICAN ROAD Festival is being planned—stay tuned for details." So, this brings up the question, "Just where are these festivals going to be"? Good question! Since the purpose appears to be to celebrate historic roads and auto trails, my guess is they'd be held in cities where such historic roads and auto trails exist. What are some of your ideas for cities that might fit that description? I'm a little biased when I vote for Indianapolis. Afterall, we've had The National Road, The Dixie Highway, The Michigan Road, as well as 6 US Highways (31, 36, 40, 52, 136, and 421) cutting through our town. Wikipedia even confirms our moniker as "Crossroads of America" , albeit for our interstate system. I'll be willing to listen to other arguments, but it'll take some convincing for me to waiver that the capital of the Hoosier State is the place to be. Of course, I have zero say in where it's going to be, so you have as much influence as I do. Oh yeah, did I mention Carl Fisher, the man behind the Lincoln Highway and Dixie Highway is buried in Indianapolis and is a native of Greensburg, IN (a Michigan Road town)? I doubt it's a coincidence a leg of his Dixie Highway went right in front of his Indianapolis Motor Speedway . This is beginning to sound like a slam dunk to me!

WE HAVE A WINNER!!! Yes, "Hudsonly" Alex Burr is the all-time number 1 poster on the old American Road Yahoo Group. Alex originally joined the group on October 6, 2002 (4 days after the group went online). From that point until the end, Alex posted 358 times. For those efforts, Alex receives his choice of an American Road denim hat or an American Road denim shirt. Also, he receives his choice of a DVD from Questar: --UFOs and Aliens --Alaska's Inside Passage --America's Great Road Trips and Scenic Drives --America's National Parks Collection --Legendary Muscle Cars Also, for correctly guessing Alex, Dave Reese also wins one Questar DVD of his choice. Congrats to both, and keep posting!

One of the U.S.' many roadside curiosities resides in Alexandria, Indiana, about an hour northeast of Indianapolis. The Largest Ball of Paint recently received its 20,000th coat: A Two Ton Baseball

Greetings! Jennifer has compiled the posting statistics from the American Road Yahoo Group, and we have a list of all of our members and how many posts they made while on the old Yahoo Group. In looking at the stats, we have found who our top posters were and we would like to reward our all-time top poster from the Yahoo Group for his/her contributions in making that forum a successful one. Therefore, we would like to offer the top poster his/her choice of either an American Road denim hat or shirt AND his/her choice of one of the five Questar DVDs available from John Claar's Hitching Post . Rather than merely e-mailing him/her or announcing it here, we would like to make it a little challenging for our current forum members and also offer you a prize for guessing who the top poster is. That prize will also be his/her choice of a Questar DVD. The first poster who correctly guesses the all-time top poster from the American Road Yahoo Group will win. To win, you must post your answer as a reply to this post. Only ONE guess please. If multiple guesses are made, only the first answer will be accepted. Good Luck!

As some of you may recall, in April of 2005, the 137 year old covered bridge in Bridgeton, IN was set ablaze by an arsonist, destroying the 245 foot bridge. The Bridgeton was likely the most popular of the 30-plus covered bridges that dot the Parke County, Indiana landscape. Every October, the Parke County Covered Bridge Festival attracts 2 million visitors to the 10 day event. Efforts began within days to rebuild it: Bridgeton Bridge Replacement Fund. I'm happy to report that as of early August, the rebuilding process has begun and the goal is to have the new Bridgeton Bridge assembled in time for the 50th festival in October. Pre fire, post fire, and rebuilding pictures can be found at the Parke County Covered Bridge Web Site. The new bridge will be designed like the original, however it will be equipped with a sprinkler system and several fire retardant timbers. If you've never been to the festival, I highly recommend it. There's enough scenery and good food to keep you full for weeks!

Hey Denny, I was snooping on RV Droz' US Highways site. It looks like US 20A was the original US 20 South alignment, which existed from 1933-1935. It looks like it's been US 20A since '35. As to why there are two alignments of 20 less than 10 miles apart?? Well, that's the $64 question. My guess would be politics and/or money.

I found a very interesting web site, courtesy Road Trip USA author Jamie Jensen's web blog. This couple traveled from Oregon to New Hampshire with a camera in the back seat of their car that was taking a picture every 10 seconds. 12,397 frames later, they were compacted into 15 frames per second and made into a "movie". Man, that interstate is a bore: Road Trip

Dave, If you have even a remote interest in racing, the Unser Racing Museum would probably be worth a look. Considering the Unser family accounts for 9 of 90 Indy 500 wins, I'd say they're a pretty important part of racing history. Their web site can be found at: http://www.unserracingmuseum.com Pat B.

My greatest memory growing up was Al Green's Famous Food, a drive-in on the east side of Indianapolis on US 40. By the time the early 1980's rolled around, Al's had seen it's far better days. It was one of "the" places to see and be seen during the Indianapolis cruising scene in the 1950's, according to my mom & dad. Not only was it a drive-in, but they also showed B-movies in the parking lot. But as time wore on, Al started slowing down and eventually before closing in 1984, it was just Al and his sister Belle working there. Al made the food, and Belle took the orders. Gone were the car hops.....the neon was broken......the bohemeth sign was a shadow of its former self. This is the Al Green's I remember, since I was still in grade school in the late 1970's. However, if I begged enough, I got to tag along with some of my older brothers on a Friday or Saturday night. I'd be in the back in the kitchen area where Al had an Asteroids arcade where I'd kill time. Al loved IU basketball and Bobby Knight. You'd never find a bigger supporter of either than Al was. Belle was nothing less than a riot....very outgoing and never afraid to tell you what's on her mind. They were really good to me and my five older brothers. Often times, Belle would greet us by our sequence number of our birth in the Bremer clan. When she'd see me walk in with one of my brothers, she'd yell out, "Hey Al, look! Number 6 is here"! It went a little further than that, as she introduced my brother Scott (Number 2) to his future wife, Jane. In 1986, a couple years after they closed, they even showed their support to us by showing up to my mom's funeral. In the later years, Al's was not only known for its still great food, but for the slow service. How slow? Well, when you placed your order with Belle, it could easily be another 3 hours before it'd be ready on a busy night! That's just the way it was. Al would cook it one order at a time. And it was the best burger-food I've ever had....nothing will ever come close. The burgers were served with, as best can be described, a condensed golden mushroom soup on top of the burger. They were best consumed with a side of tater tots and a jumbo cherry Coke. Whatever ratio Belle used with the cherry syrup to Coke have yet to be duplicated according to my taste buds. After they closed in '84, Al and Belle continued to live in the basement of the restaurant until the early 1990's when the board of health ordered them out. They later sold the land to a car dealer and Al Green's became a memory. Al passed away in the late 1990's and Belle passed away in 2005. For those of you who might have a copy of Karl Raitz' "A Guide to The National Road", there are two photos and some text about Al Green's on page 243. I'd love to find pictures of Al's from its heyday. Just glad I was able to experience what I did.

Excellent suggestion! My dad did that very thing a few years ago. He took one of his Model A Fords to a convention in St. Charles, IL. He picked up IL-47 off US 136 and took it up to just west of St. Charles. Good route too...usually have the whole road to yourself, as I recall.

It'll be on TV here, if you want to make the 4 hour drive past the Dome and up to Indy to watch the game with us.

I don't know if this will be showing on all PBS stations, but Thursday night the Indy PBS station will be showing "The Mother Road" at 10pm Eastern. The description from the WFYI web site describes it as follows: Mother Road This film celebrates Route 66, from Chicago to Los Angeles, where the filmmaker, Lauren Cardillo along with her 80 year old mother, Irene take the roadtrip of their lives in a Mustang convertible. Shot over three weeks, the program spans eight states, three time zones, and more than 2400 miles, discovering fascinating people along the way, while capturing the nostalgia of the infamous highway. Viewers will see the start of Route 66 in Chicago; Ted Drewes' ice cream stand and the Red Cedar Inn in Missouri; the Ribbon Road, the Blue Whale and the Coleman Theatre in Oklahoma; the Cadillac Ranch in Texas; the Jackalope and Tucumcari in New Mexico; the Jack Rabbit Trading Post, Oatman and the Grand Canyon in Arizona; and the end of the pavement on the California coast in Santa Monica. Pat B.

For those of you familiar with the 40 foot tall clock atop the Colgate-Palmolive plant in Clarksville, IN along the Ohio River, it looks like it's staying put. C-P announced a few months ago they were moving operations to a plant in Tennessee and wanted to take the clock with them. However, C-P said they realize it's a strong community symbol in the Clarksville/Louisville area and chose to leave it. The clock was placed on this year's Top 10 Endangered list by Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana. For those of you crossing over the Ohio River northbound on US 31 will know what an impressive sight the clock is, especially at night. Here's an article from the Indy Star: Saved! and here is a good night shot: Neon and a day shot: Colgate Clock

Greetings, Alex. Glad to see you made it over here! Instead of posting the whole thing, here's a link to a Topic Jennifer put up on the "Technical" section: Photo Gallery Info Pat

We took 6 across a good portion of PA last weekend on our way home from Connecticut. We picked it up in Scranton and followed it also to Warren, before heading south on US 62 along the river. I told Jennifer 6 in PA is now my favorite US highway. There are a slew of clean mom & pop motels along that entire section, many with cafes in front, great little towns, and fantastic scenery. We're really looking forward to exploring it at a more leisurely pace. Pat B.

To change the time zone to your location: 1. Click on "My Controls" at the top of the page. 2. Under "Options", click on "Board Settings". 3. From the drop down menu, select your correct time zone and at the bottom of the page, click "Change My Account Options".

My first post on the new forum, so I thought I'd post it here. Why? In 5 minutes, I'm heading 3 blocks south and turning left at the light to get a pizza. The street I'll then be on? Crawfordsville Road, aka The Dixie Highway western alignment, aka formerly US 136. Let's see if I did this right...this was only a test.